Carry On, My Friend
by 13opals
Summary: The Wizarding world fell at the Battle of Hogwarts. Never ones to give up, Harry, Ron, and Hermione created a resistance opposing the new regime, and will fight tooth and nail to win. That was one year ago, but the trio is in it for the long run this time. They'll fight until the bitter end, find some surprising allies, and avenge the world. Hermione-centric.
1. Under Gringotts

They met in the tunnels under Gringotts.

It had been a while since Hermione had been back in England, let alone Diagon Alley. Harry had sent her and Luna on a mission to the bank-petty robberies used to be beneath the Boy Who Lived, but funding an underground resistance took more than just strong words and, as she liked to put it, birthright. Luna, however, had been injured in their old Apparation spot(Death Eaters were tipped off), and Hermione sent her back. Hopefully the younger girl would sent some sort of reinforcements. This was Gringotts, and breaking in wouldn't be as easy as before.

Getting in was easy, barely any goblins worked in plain sight anymore. Voldemort's rule had killed many old, well respected goblin families, and more and more had begun to revolt. So, as he did with people who rebelled, the Dark Lord exterminated them. And witches and wizards were much easier to fool than goblins, especially now that Hermione looked nothing like she used to. Over a year of hard traveling and living in the Resistance had changed her almost as much as Luna's glamor charms. A fake key got her into the stone passageways, and a quick Stunner to the wizard that escorted her allowed her free rein on the carts. By the time she had gotten down to the targeted vault, the spells had worn off some, and Hermione didn't redo them. It wouldn't matter, if she was caught she's just be stuck under the bank, and there was little chance they would recognize her.

The Selwyn's vault wasn't too high profile. Hermione lowered her wand an inch, almost disappointed. She expected something a little more extravagant, if not another dragon. Perhaps the Selwyn family had fallen out with Voldemort or something. It was a lock and key vault, and Hermione pulled out one of George's new inventions-a clay like substance that molded itself to whatever it was pressed against, so Hermione could use it as a master key. What made it remarkable, however, was the fact that the clay undid whatever magical properties were embedded what it molded. Once used, the Gringotts keyhole would be simply a keyhole. No goblin magic involved.

The inside of the Selywn vault made up for it's rather unimpressive exterior. There was gold everywhere, Galleons, Sickles, Knuts, and all sorts of jewels and ornate heirlooms. Hermione did a few charms to see the protective spells, and as before, in the Lestrange vault, found Gemino and Flagarant curses on the items. What was new was what looked like a version of a Nox charm-if Hermione picked anything up, she'd be plunged into darkness. Okay, that maybe was a little difficult to undo, but she got rid of the other two charms with a simple wave of her wand.

"_Nox._.." Hermione muttered, trying to remember the properties of the first year spell. It had been a while, even of a mind like hers. What if she simply cast an all inclusive Lumos on the item she wanted to pick up? Would that cancel it out, or just make that one item shine? It may even do nothing at all to the Nox, if it was stronger than her charm.

She was interrupted in her musings by the unmistakable sounds of human voices wafting the the long stone corridors.

Crap. Hermione glanced at the open vault doors. She could lock herself in, but that was foolish enough to kill her. No, the best way, if the voices were even coming her way, would be to fight them off. She felt a small smile come on as she gripped her wand. Maybe she was a little more feral than she used to be, but Hermione was still Hermione- she took a lot of pride in her spell work. She flattened herself against the vault door, careful not to touch any of the treasure, and listened.

The voices were definitely coming her way. It sounded like two, maybe three people, and at least one male. Hermione swallowed. She could take three, easy.

They were getting closer, and she tensed, waiting for the attack. Something was...off about their speech, but Hermione couldn't put her finger on it. She distinctly heard a sharp female voice as well, which only left the mystery third person who may or may not exist. Hermione thought there were three sets of steps, but only two were speaking. She pushed herself flatter against the door. Adrenaline built up with tension as she waited for the perfect time to pounce, feeling a little inkling of fear slip through her. No matter how many fight she'd in, she couldn't get rid of that tiny bit of fear, but quite been honestly, she liked it. It kept her alert, kept her alive. It was practical.

Here.

Hermione pushed herself off the wall, startling the three-_three!_ she crowed- walking near her. The girl, who had long dark hair reacted first, drawing her wand and stepping in front of the two boys. Wasting no time, she sent out a silent Body-Bind Hex, dodging a Stunner from the girl and a Disarming Charm from one of the two boys. A quick Shield Charm stopped the girl's violet hex, but the force of it almost shattered the shield.

That was her first indication that something was wrong. One, who uses a Bat-Bogey Hex in combat? And another, it was quite a _strong _Bat-Bogey. Hermione shook it off, Stunning her in retaliation. This one hit, and the girl fell to the ground with a thump, displacing what must have been a sleek black wig to reveal bright red hair.

_Red hair?_

As she gaped, one of the other boys had come up behind her. Hermione turned, she was still faster, and jabbed her wand in his jugular. "_Stupefy!_" was on her lips, but the dirt streaked face of Neville Longbottom froze the words. He glared at her when she didn't attack, but his expression of loathing slowly grew into confusion, and then awe.

_"Hermione?"_

Her jaw dropped. Neville? Here? She removed her wand from his throat, but jabbed it straight back again.

"In fourth year, what did Ron show Neville Longbottom as a souvenir from the England Quidditch World Cup?"

"What? Hermione-"

"Answer me!"

"Uh, it was a statue thing, like a figurine, yeah? Of Krum?"

She breathed out slowly, taking her wand down. "Had to check."

Neville stared at her. "It's brilliant to see you, Hermione, but what are you doing here? And what-what _happened?_"

What happened? Hermione supposed he meant the new look. A year of fighting and training left Hermione in better shape then she'd ever been, and constant skirmishes convinced her to cut her hair and pile it in an untidy heap on top of her head, as well as to forego loose clothing. One didn't think it made a difference, but combined with what was left of Luna's charms, Hermione figured she looked like a homeless stripper. "All this? Mostly Luna, and it's easier to travel in these clothes. Fight, too." she crouched down next to the girl who must be Ginny and whispered a spell. Her eyes opened immediately, but closed again after a few seconds. She began to lightly snore.

"Gosh." Hermione said, frowning. 'She must be dead tired."

"We've been going a little fast this week. Haven't eaten much. Did you say Luna?" Neville said. Hermione smiled at him, lifting Ginny on to her feet. Neville took her weight, lifting her with surprising ease. She took the time to look him up and down, see what exactly happened to Neville. Hermione wasn't the only one who had gone through drastic changes. Neville had lost weight(or was he the same from the Battle of Hogwarts?) and gained muscle, and was encased in a leather jacket similar to her own. Stubble covered his cheeks, and he carried himself with a little more confidence than before. All good changes for Neville, he had gotten strong, but Hermione could see the dark shadows under his eyes, and spotted the wayward gray strands of hair by his temples. They matched Harry's.

"She's with us, at the Resistance."

"So it does exist." it was said with a sort of finality, with renewed hope that Hermione rarely thought of the headquarters with.

"We'll talk later." Hermione said. Wouldn't Harry be pleased! "We should get out of here-"

She turned as she spoke, locking eyes accidentally with the third member of the party. It took a little for her to completely register the gray eyes that regarded her warily.

And then they were dueling. Hermione wasn't even aware how fast her wand came out of her holster, wasn't even thinking of how fast her opponent had to be to counter her first curse. Her mind was in haywire, in that state of mind she got in when she truly feared for her life.

Neville was shouting, and a little bit of her remembered that they were in a place where it was crucial not to get overheard-that made her cast a strong Shield Charm around herself and look at him. Hermione did not lower her wand.

"What are you _doing?_"

"What am I-is he with you? Him? He's a Death Eater, excuse me for defending myself!" she answered a little shrilly.

"Not...quite." Draco Malfoy said. "Don't you remember?"

"Remember what?"

"For god's sake, stop shrieking, Granger. You're going to be heard, and then you'll get us all caught."

"I'll-I'll get you captured?" Hermione spluttered. He did have a point, rudeness aside-they had to get out of there. "Fine. I'm getting what I came for and then you can tell me why exactly you're here and why _he's_ with you."

Neville nodded, bemused. He reached a hand out to the Selwyn vault, but Hermione grabbed his arm.

"Wait!"

She closed her eyes and returned to the Nox problem. Yes, she'd have to try the inclusive Lumos. Eyes still closed and concentrating fiercely, Hermione waved her wand once in the all too familiar motion and cast the most powerful lumos charm she had ever done. The resulting blast was huge, though calling it a blast was a little incorrect. Light poured from every object in the vault, streaming out and stinging the company's eyes. Neville gasped aloud, eyes watering, and turned his back on the light, trying not to drop Ginny. Draco simply covered his eyes with an arm and ducked.

When the light faded, Hermione opened her eyes, smiled slightly, and conjured a bag to stuff gold in. "Here, help me- Undetectable Extension Charm, you should be able to fit a lot of this stuff. Try not to touch anything dark." she said to Neville, who obliged, handing Ginny off to Malfoy. The exchange made Hermione purse her lips, but time was of the essence, and prejudices had to be put aside for the moment.

Five or so minutes later, Hermione decided they had enough, and directed them to an open area near the cart track.

"And how exactly are we getting back?" Malfoy sneered.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Believe it or not, I've got quite a few tricks up my sleeve." she reached into her now battered beaded bag, which had a place of honor strapped to her thigh, and pulled out one of George's creations, a loud purple and red cube, about six inches across.

"We call this the AAP." Hermione explained. "Anti-Anti-Apparation. Weird name, I know, but it does what it says. It removes all the anti-apparation spells with a six foot radius. Stand close to it, and all of you, grab hold of me."

"Why can't we Apparate on our own?"

"Cause I'm taking you to base. You won't be able to, not with the protective enchantments we've set up."

"They're that extensive?"

"That and more. We've had the full order put up a shield, and a group of us are strengthening it everyday. There are ways to get in, but you have to know where to go." Hermione said. "Go on, link hands with me."

Hermione linked an arm around Neville's to try and keep Ginny from falling, and had Malfoy put a hand on her shoulder. One...two...three..she silently counted to herself. As she reached the last digit, Hermione turned sharply, almost shaking Malfoy off, and felt for her old Apparation spot. She used a different one than she had that morning, for safety purposes, and the fact that Death Eaters already knew about the old one.

They landed in a sunlight clearing in a forest near by. It was about a mile and a half to the entrance, but when she told the others so, Hermione realized exactly how fatigued they were.

"We should stop." she said. "Rest up for an hour or two. Harry can wait."

Neville shook his head at first. "We should keep moving."

"We've been moving for over a week." Malfoy said. "You haven't gotten any sleep at all, let alone the Ginger and me."

Hermione nodded. "Put Ginny down, go on, just for an hour." She realized she would have to make the first move, and settled down, back to a tree. "I've got food."

'Food' was the key word. Neville sat, along with Malfoy, and Ginny was placed against Hermione's tree. Hermione herself reached into her beaded bag and pulled out small, muggle Ziplock bags holding cheese and bread.

"A little medieval, but it'll do for the four of us. Should we wake Ginny?"

Neville prodded her with his wand. "Dunno if she'll get up. She was always a deep sleeper, we haven't been able to shake that, no matter how many raids-"

Hermione swatted his hand away, smiling a little, before sobering. "We all thought you were dead, all of you. How-what were you doing, this year?"

Neville winced a little, stretching. "Hermione, it's been a tough week-"

"It's_ imperative_ that I know before bringing you to base." she said firmly. Think of all the dangers they may bring base. Not to mention, she had never really checked whether Ginny and Malfoy were themselves...Hermione's hand twitched in the direction of her wand. Neville, however, had grown observant, and caught the move.

"Hermione." he said sharply. "Please."

"I'm not letting anything happen to our base, okay? We have been strengthening it everyday and it is the only safe place left!"

"I understand but-"

"No, you really don't." Hermione hissed, taking deep breaths and trying to calm down. "I'm not letting anything happen to the people in there. And what-what the _hell_ is Malfoy doing here?"

Neville was glaring at this point too-that was new. Hermione was surprised he could even stand up to her without quavering, but everyone had changed. Apparently he didn't just lose weight.

"How much do you remember of the Battle of Hogwarts?" he asked slowly.

She shrugged. "Not much. Harry came back from being Crucio'd in the forest and Vol-he broke our protective charms and Harry opened the portal in the Room to get us all out."

"Do you remember how Harry got the Elder Wand?"

Hermione frowned. Somehow, knowledge of the horcruxes and the Deathly Hallows became common knowledge after the fight. "No." she said tersely. She'd rather keep those things between herself, Harry, and Ron.

"You see, it was Draco that figured it out. He'd been doing some reading on why You-Know-Who was looking for wands and he figured it out. He was the one who got Harry out of the forest, he got him the wand."  
"That doesn't make any sense." Hermione protested. "Harry didn't say a word."

"Well, everyone thought Draco was dead, and apparently he asked him not to tell."

"And you _believed _ a cover story like that?" she cried, incredulous. "You had _no_ proof!"

"He proved his worth." Neville said simply. "You really think we'd be alive if he betrayed us? Heck, we'd be dead if it weren't for him."

It was such a naive though, _such_ an awful, naive risk. Hermione was fuming. Neville seemed to sense that, because he backed off and changed the subject.

"We had no idea the Resistance was even a thing." he said. "Of course we heard stories, but after our last three leads were dead ends and traps, we stopped looking. I mean, I guessed that Harry was still alive, but I figured you guys were doing what you did seventh year-hiding out in a tent in the country."

Hermione shrugged. "We did for a while, but shutting down Hogwarts was the last straw for Harry. We were still in contact with the remaining Order members, and they couldn't exactly shut down his idea. He is technically the Savior, you know. So we set up a stronghold and we got the word out. You-Know-Who started spreading that whole fake Resistance story to you know, help with morale. I guess it worked in your case."

"That's what Ginny thought!" he exclaimed. "She swore that Harry wouldn't just hide this time. And she predicted the whole Taboo thing again."

The Taboo had returned, only instead of 'Voldemort' being the only word jinxed, his full name, 'Tom Riddle' had also been covered. Hermione hated that they were cornered into using the old names, the ones spoken with fear, but it was necessary.

"Come on." Hermione said. "You may as well tell me what you lot have been up to. breaking into Gringotts, isn't that a little ambitious?"

"Says the person who's done it twice." Neville retorted. A full grin sprouted on Hermione's face, and she laughed, thankful for her baggie of food and her company-people she hadn't thought of in years.

And Malfoy, she supposed.

* * *

"The Selwyn vault, my lord."

The cloaked man was hunched over, not daring to meet his master's eyes. He expected punishment, for being the bearer of bad news, and Lord Voldemort was not one to deny. A quick flick of his wand, and the man was screaming, tearing his hair out, tears spewing down his face. Just one _Crucio_, that was enough. Lord Voldemort stood from his throne, hand crafted from the three hourglasses that had once stood above the students of Hogwarts. The Slytherin one, as tribute to his ancestor, remained high above Voldemort's stronghold-Hogwarts. He swept down the halls of his home, Nagini slithering at his heels. The problem, he mused, with being a genius was that he had to perform such menial torture on his lowest followers. Honestly, it still ended up hurting the man, even if Voldemort didn't have his vengeance in it at all. He walked the familiar path to the dungeons, where the damp drove his prisoners of war mad.

He had long since grown tired of purebloods complaining about their vaults being robbed from. He suspected this pesky Resistance, no doubt headed by that _boy. _Still, it was their job to keep their money safe. Voldemort lifted his chin as he passed the cells of prisoners either captured or ones who had displeased himself. But, ah, there was a new arrival, one he had seen and tortured before. Oh, _fun_.

He looked down at the shivering girl with the vacant eyes. Her yellow hair created a halo in the damp and the dark, giving her a semi-angelic presence. Lord Voldemort raised his wand.

"Hello." he said.

* * *

**AN: GUESS WHO'S BACK**

**Yeah, hey guys! It's been a while, and I've decided to start fresh, bam, action packed joy for you. I should be updating frequently until school has the nerve to start again, but don't worry! Back for good this time, my loves. **

**Also, desperately looking for a beta for this story. Help me out?**


	2. It's Alright

Luna lifted her face to You-Know-Who, her eyesight marred by hair that looked like spun gold in the dark, and she breathed in heavily.

"I don't know anything." she said mildly. "And even if I did I won't be able to tell you. It's alright, you can kill me now."

_Crucio_.

"You are not in any position to dictate what I can do, girl." he hissed when her screams stopped ringing from the walls.

"It's alright." Luna said again, trying to face him once more. She had been tortured for days and days but it was nothing, nothing to this, this was madness, _he_ was madness, his curses hurt so much more, and she just wanted to sleep for a very long time, or even an hour, that would be okay, and _Harry-_

Be brave, Hermione used to say. Like Harry, be brave like Harry. And clever, like Hermione herself. And faithful, like Ron, who had lost so much. She wouldn't betray them now, even if she could. But Luna could resist. And all through her mind, as Lord Voldemort sifted through it with the skill and ease of a practiced Legilimens, he could only find one, unifying thought: "_friendsfriendsfriendsfriends__friendsfriendsfriendsfriends__friendsfriendsfriendsfriends__friendsfriendsfriendsfriends-"_

"It's alright!" she cried, sobbing. "It's alright, you won't be able to find anything, the mental wards have been strengthened everyday."

He retreated from her mind. "Mental wards? What band of teenagers know how to create mental wards?"

That gave her the strength to straighten from her kowtow on the floor, now sitting on her heels. "If you think we're just a band of teenagers, after all this time, you're very wrong." Luna said, her voice slightly hoarse from screaming. "We have the brightest witches and wizards-"

A cut slashed across her cheekbone. Voldemort hadn't even blinked, he simply willed it to happen. Luna swallowed, fear finally setting in her bones like a dead weight. "The brightest-" she tried again. "The-oh, bugger." Luna exclaimed softly. Voldemort raised both his eyebrow and his wand, a bad sign.

She had always known this was a possibility. Luna had been at Bellatrix Lestrange's mercy for months before Harry rescued her, and there were moments in which she truly thought she was going to die. And eventually, Luna accepted it. She was burdened with the inevitable fact of her death, and she embraced it wholeheartedly. But Bellatrix hadn't broken her-Luna's fire hadn't gone out. She constantly threw their words back in their face the only way she could, by being herself. The rebellion would live on, the D.A. would prosper in Hogwarts, and Harry hadn't been caught, would never be caught. She lived in hope, not fear. Somehow, it was the purest form of living, Luna was in constant meditation, nearly starved to death, but hope sustained her. Maybe she would die, but that was okay as long as she took something from her captors. Even if it was as menial as their time, the time it took for Luna walk slowly up the steps of the dungeon, that was enough. It was her own small rebellion.

Hope, not fear.

This was nothing like being locked in Malfoy Manor. This was true, pure fear, and this hurt. There was no hope. There was no _Hogwarts_, how could there be hope? Harry was locked in his ivory tower, committing sins his noble self could never bear. Her first friend, stuck in a shell of self inflicted pain and responsibility. Morals meant nothing if survival was compromised. It was all in vain, Luna knew. Her friends were dead. Their light, the light Luna held in her chest during her stay at the Manor, had been estingushied by what Hermione called 'the real world'.

Luna, tears hanging off her eyelashes, looked up at her torturer. "I don't want to die."

It's alright, it's alright! She still had her light, she still kept it locked safe in her chest, even if it was small it was enough! Enough to save her friends!

Lord Voldemort pointed his wand at her almost lazily. Fitting last words, he thought.

A flash of light, and Luna crumpled to the dirt floor, her long hair settling around her like sun stroked dust.

* * *

Hermione roughly shook Ginny awake. "Come on, Gin, we have to move."

Neville was doing the same the Malfoy, as he shouldered his pack. Hermione felt her bushy hair spring back from Luna's glamor charms, and felt slightly relived. At least she looked relatively like herself.

The redhead groaned loudly, swatting at Hermione and turning over. Hermione shot a glance at Neville, who sighed, walked over, and began tickling Ginny in the ribs. Hermione automatically jumped back-Ginny had a reputaion in the girls dorms for violent outbursts for anyone who even skimmed her there. She, however, proved Hermione wrong. Instead of madly flailing, Ginny let out a single short punch to what would have been Neville's face if he hadn't dodged, her eyes flying open, as she rolled out of his arms, onto her feet and into a dueling stance. Neville as not the only one ho had changed.

"It's alright, Gin, it's us." Neville said, placating hand out. Ginny relaxed at the sight of him, and tensed up again while spotting Hermione.

"_Hermione?_"

"I haven't got time for explanations." Hermione said after a warm embrace. "We have to reach camp before they send the noon patrols out. They're probably already waiting for me...or think I'm dead. Either one." She tightened her beaded bag to her thigh and set off through the familiar forest path, Neville, Malfoy, and Ginny trailing behind. She could hear Neville quietly explaining the situation to Ginny.

"Sorry for the Stunner, Ginny." Hermione called back. "Heat of the moment, and you didn't look like yourself."

"I'd apologize too for not recognizing you, but you looked pretty different. _And_ you dodged my Bat Bogey, which is a first."

Hermione grinned as she pushed aside some ferns. "Harry's going to be glad to see you lots."

"Harry?" Ginny hissed, almost unbelieving. "He's still alive? And what, what's he doing?"

"Resistance, Ginny. It was his idea, and he's organizing it." Hermione glanced back just in time to see Ginny's face burst into sunbeams. She smiled so bashfully, Hermione could almost see the fifteen year old girl whom their leader had kissed for the first time.

"I knew it." Ginny said quietly. "I freaking knew it."

Smiling to herself, Hermione continued along the barely marked dirt path. They had evolved past the Fidelius Charm, ad their new wards had become more and more advanced. Not only was a modified version of the Secret Keeper charm used, but Hermione and Terry Boot had implemented mental wards. Because Terry had studied the most about such wards, which hadn't even been perfected yet, he contacted her for the possibility of creating a large scale ward. They spent weeks in what was left of the Black library, using every resource they could find. It was hard work without the Hogwarts library, and Hermione missed that place with all her heart. Some older Order members even helped out, and that sped the process up considerably. The way they had perfected the wards was so that each person had a blanket covering dangerous information in their head. Each person had a specific trigger that they could use to automatically stop a mind reader. To a Legimens, it would look like there was only a single thought in the person's mind. And if the user didn't have time to trigger the ward, Hermione had insisted on an introverted ward. The user would now be unable to speak if it meant revealing their secrets, so the Imperius Curse couldn't be used against them. It was still gruesome, and a length that most in the Resistance wouldn't like very much. It meant that it was possible for a person to actually bite their tongues out rather than give information.

The stronghold was hidden as well. It was obviously Unplottable, and the shields around it were strengthened every hour by patrolling wizards. The only way in was through the front gates, where people were subject to incredibly long processes, determining whether they were themselves or not. But Hermione had left herself a backdoor open. Most of the buildings were underground, and there was a simple air shaft that would get her to a seemingly remote location underground. Once there, all she had to do was lift a few charms and Apparate in. That way, if the Death Eaters found the shaft, they still wouldn't know where to go. Foolproof, Hermione thought.

The shaft was located a half mile away from camp, and Hermione walked the distance with purpose, a little faster than she ought to have. All the while, she talked, trying to catch up on Neville's story. They had attempted forming a Resistance of their own, but it was short lived. Otherwise, no news had gotten to them about the actual organization.

Hermione passed some bread back to Ginny, remembering she hadn't eaten last night. "Haven't you been listening to _Potterwatch_?"

Malfoy frowned. "The rebel show? It shut down at the Battle of Hogwarts."

She shook her head. "No. Lee Jordan is with us back home, he runs it. George and Kingsley still appear on the show too...but I guess it's a lot harder to get in now. It would have been hard for you guys to find it."

Ginny's eyes widened at the sound of her brother's name. "George is still alive?"

Hermione nodded. "They all are, well except..." she trailed off, not wanting to mention Fred's name. Ginny's face fell. "And Charlie was banged up pretty bad, but they're all okay."

Ginny hadn't seen her family in over a year, Hermione realized. Neville patted her shoulder and Ginny looked at the dirt, and moved to walk in step with Hermione.

"Hermione?"

"Yeah?" she replied.

"What exactly have you guys been...doing?"

She frowned. "What do you mean?" Neville winced.

"At Gringotts, you were stealing for money, right? That just...doesn't sound like a very Harry thing to assign."

"Hard times, Neville. We need money, and it's a small rebellion in itself stealing from Death Eaters. Harry's not exactly Mr. Gryffindor anymore. He's grown up." Hermione sucked in her cheeks. "We all have. It's not all we do, there are obviously raids and such-" she stopped, realizing that the Resistance's primary goal was to be a safe haven. The place that Voldemort could never find them, that was it. But they hadn't exactly been resisting his rule very much lately. Morale was way down, and though Harry tried to fight as ardently as he could, he knew that Voldemort had made new Horcruxes after the Battle of Hogwarts and spent most of his time looking for them. In a way, Harry being their leader was the best and the worst thing that could have happened. He always made sure everyone had enough to eat, and he was the most unprejudiced person Hermione knew, but he started neglecting the members out of desperation. Even talking about his problems to Ron and Hermione...he even stopped that.

"It doesn't matter. You'll see when you get there." she said, pushing ahead of Neville again.

"What's going to happen to me?" Malfoy called from the back of the party. "My name's mud these days, no matter who's crowd you're talking to."

"If your cover story checks out, Harry won't persecute you." she dismissed.

"I doubt Potter can see objectively." he grumbled. Hermione threw him a look.

"Listen Malfoy, you're lucky I haven't killed you yet, don't go antagonizing me." she said coolly. "But then again. Harry's not really in a forgiving mood lately. You better pray he agrees with your story."

Malfoy blanched. "This better be worthwhile. I did not leave the Death Eaters to join a losing side."

Hermione glared at him. "Stop talking and I won't hurt you."

Surprisingly, he obliged.

She pushed asde a couple of ferns. The entrance should be just around the corner. "Anyway, we'll get you a couple Healers and food when we reach camp. It's not too far now, just-"

"Through that gaping hole in the floor?" Neville asked dryly.

In the clearing where Hermione normally covered up her back door, the vent had been thoroughly excavated, leaving a gigantic hole in the middle of the forest. The entrance of the pipe's stairs could be seen through it, silver and shining and definitely messed up. Hermione gasped, running to the lip of the hole. "Someone's been through here." she murmured.

"You're intellect is befuddling." Malfoy said sarcastically. "A lot of someones, it looks like."

"Shut up!" Hermione swore loudly. "Luna hasn't been back-she couldn't cover the hole, we've been found out." She swung her legs into the pipe. "Come on. Death Eaters are most likely in base."

She pointed her wand at the pipe. "In, all of you. _Glissio_!" the pipe turned smooth, and Hermione pushed off hard, hurtling through the underground. At this point she didn't even care if the others were following her, or if Ginny had the presence of mind to cover the hole before getting in(she did), all she needed was to get underground in case a battle as coming up. No matter what, Hermione was wired for combat. The pipe opened up to a large underground cavern, and Hermione rolled off the impact and landed on her feet, running through the passage. The others weren't as lucky, tumbling to the ground in a heap, but recovered quickly. Soon, they joined Hermione in her dead sprint.

Neville was faster than she was. He jogged past her, yelling "Where do we go?"

Hermione swore again. The distance was too much. "Wait for a second! I can do this!" She skidded round a corner and faced a wall. "_Reducto!"_ she screamed, dissolving the cavern wall to reveal a screaming huge fight. They were standing on a ledge overlooking the main enterance of the Resistance, and nearly all of the members were on their feet, fighting the thirty or so cloaked men in the center of the floor. Hermione narrowed her eyes, her gaze fixed on the dark haired man fending off four of them directly below her.

"Follow me." she said quietly. Neville looked at her in shock, but Hermione had already jumped off the ledge, firing curses at enemies as she fell. Ginny, with a whoop, took a running leap after her unsheathing her wand. Neville looked at Malfoy.

"There's nothing down there but rocks, is there?"

Neville shook his head and sighed. "Let's go." He grabbed Draco by the sleeve and jumped.

Hermione was already far loer than they were, but even she waiting until the last second to cast a Cushioning Charm on the ground around them. She hit the ground hard this time, but shot a quick "_Confringo!" _at one of the Death Eaters surronding her leader.

Harry Potter spun around at the sight of her on the ground. "Hermio-" he was cut off as a jet of green shot towards him. Harry conjured a golden shield to deflect the curse, then Charmed it to swing at the nearest attacker. He turned again, and helped her up. "How did this happen?" he demanded. "When did you get back, where's Luna?"

Ginny landed on her knees, her hair an arc around her. "That was kinda crazy, Hermione, gotta say." she laughed, stepping back in a dueling stance and freezing quite completely at the sight of Harry staring at her, dumbfounded.

"Ginny?" he whispered. Ginny's jaw dropped.

Hermione dove in front of Harry, casting a strong Shield Charm to deflect an array of hexes. "Can you guys do this later, please?"

Ginny looked around like she'd been shocked. 'Er, right." she said, as Neville and Malfoy landed behind her, both of them sweating.

"That was terrifying." Neville said.

"Neville?_ Malfoy?"_

"Later, Harry, later!" Hermione cried, fighting her way to the middle of the cavern. Harry followed her casting a strong Shield around them. "i need time, Harry. I'm going to try out one of those Runic Charms I've been reading about."

"How much time, exactly?"

"Five minutes. Exactly." Hermione said, looking straight at Harry. "Where's Padma? Or Terry? Either one of them can do the spell with me, I don't think I can do it by myself."

Harry nodded. "Oi, Neville, Gin, protect Hermione. She's trying a-a thing. Hermione, start the charm, I'm going to find one of them."

Ginny nodded, taking a stance by Hermione's right side, Neville doing the same on the other side. "Nothing's getting past us."

Harry cast her a small smile before diving back into the fight. Hermione closed her eyes, trying to remember her Runes.

Runic Charms could be used in the same way that Dark Magic was used-widespread and with reckless abandon. In this purpose, she was trying to remember the rune for 'Immobolis'. It would act the same as the normal spell, but would affect the entire cavern and would be able to penetrate Shield Charms. After freezing everyone, she could simply unfreeze her team mates and dispose of the Death Eaters. With her wand, Hermione quickly traced in the air the root of 'immobile', before tacking on the rest of the complex accent arks marking the spell. Somewhere along the way, Padma Patil's warm hands grabbed hers, and added on to the trace with her own wand. The rune shimmered in the air, glowing blue and gold, before darkening to black.

The two girls slashed their wands down, yelling out the spell as it turned into a black ring, sweeping arcoss the entire cave. The fighting stopped. No one moved.

Padma fell to her knees. "Crap." she said. "That took up way too much energy."

Hermione, also panting, nodded and helped her up. "We have to work on the bigger spells. Come on."

She whispered the countercurse, pointing her wand at Ginny and Neville. "Find Harry. Unfreeze him, and then the rest, Harry'll know what to do about these guys." She pointed to the nearest Death Eater.

Ginny nodded and hurried off, scanning the crowd for Harry(or, Hermione suspected anyone with red hair), Neville close behind. Padma, behind her, grabbed Hermione's hand and tugged her down to sit beside her on the rock floor.

"I don't know if we just haven't been practicing enough-"

"Or if we literally don't have enough magic." Hermione finished. "I understand. But solitary wizards have been able to do Runic spells before, I just think we need practice."

"And a major power boost." Padma grumbled. "God, I don't get how Terry got it so easily. May have to corner him until he divulges his secrets." she grinned, nugding the other girl with her shoulder

"Don't feel too bad. He isn't even able to control it all anyway." Hermione smiled, more than a little aware that Padma cornering Terry on a regular basis. A faint cry of her name snapped her out of her conversation. She turned slightly from her seat on the floor, to see Ron, Harry and Ginny walking purposfully towards her. It was so much like old times she felt her heart ache, and she let out a small smile for senitmentality's sake. Then, quick as a flash, She got to her feet and nodded tersly at both of them.

"Got intel, as well as some newcomers. Gin and Neville here, I already checked if they were themselves, but they brought...a stray."

Harry nodded grimly, and Ron moved to Hermione's side. "Yeah, found him and Neville a bit back. Sent him to a spare room before the rest of these guys wake up and see him."

"Wise move. They might rip him apart."

"Did you get the goods, Hermione?" Ron wanted to know. "And where's Luna?"

She it her lip, and Harry and Ron's faces lit up with alarm. "Maybe we should talk inside." Harry said. He stalked past the frozen bodies to the main corridor.

"Padma, unfreeze a couple of others and have them help do everyone else. Leave the Death Eaters in a corner or something, just don't touch 'em yet."

Padma, combing her silky black hair back from her face, nodded. The rest of the party followed Harry through the winding dirt and rock to the main war chambers. He yanked open the door to the very first one and revealed Draco Malfoy, disheveled and dirty from the fight, sitting on the table.

"Potter." he said quietly, nodding in affirmation. "Weasel, Granger. Still thick as thieves, are you?"

Ron scowled, but Harry lay a hand on his shoulder. "Seems an explanation is in order."

"Yes, I rather think."

* * *

**AN: Hello, friends! In case any y'all were wondering, update speed will probs be faster on this one, alright? Chapter's still unbetaed, I just wanted to get it out as fast as I could. But still, if you find any glaring holes, shoot me a message! Anything is appreciated. **

**Any thoughts on where this is going? I actually have it well outlined, so it's not going to be an everywhere fiasco. Of course, I'll change a couple things...**

**(seriously though, severely distracted because new Sherlock)**

**FF was being hella screwy with updating lately, so I technically finished this two days ago. I literally just got on the site without it error messaging me.**

**Please review, I love you all.**

**13opals**


	3. Next to You

Ginny couldn't take her eyes off of him.

Harry was decidedly avoiding her gaze as he listened to Hermione and Malfoy's stories, but she knew he felt her eyes on him. It would be tasteless to smile, but she really wanted to anyway. Suppressing the feeling, Ginny just took her time looking at him. Her Harry- she hadn't seen him in so long, and he was just perfect. Everything that he had been through, all the trials she missed by not being by his side, it all showed on his face. Harry was always expressive. Still, it was worrying. The fire in his eyes was a bright as ever, but there were streaks of gray by his temples. Permanent furrows marred his brow, and there was a decidedly grim set to his jaw. Ginny looked down briefly, looking at her own thickly scarred hands. She hated it when she was reminded of all of this. It was her life, Neville argued it was life Ginny was born for, but she liked to pretend sometimes that they were still at Hogwarts. That Harry defeated Voldemort at the Battle of Hogwarts and everything was okay. Still, the voice in her head that wished for such childish things was small compared to the fighter in her.

Harry seemed to have grasped that more fully than she had thought he would.

And Ron, sitting next to her like the emotional rock he always tried(and failed) to be. Ginny had been family-less for so long, it was nice to have a brother again. Brothers, plural! She'd find them. She would, as soon as she got out of this room-

"Ginny?"

Ginny looked up with a start. "Sorry?"

Hermione smiled kindly at her, and Ginny's heart gave another leap. How she had missed these people! "We were just asking if everything Neville said was right, and if you had anything to add."

Ginny gave a small nod at Neville. "If he said it, it's true. Did we get the Malfoy situation cleared up?"

The boy in question sneered at her. "We're just getting to that." Harry said mildly. He sighed and rolled his neck, producing several popping sounds. "I may not have been completely honest with you lot about Malfoy."

Hermione's gaze sharpened. "Oh?"

"See, I only figured out that he was the true master of the Elder Wand when I got to the forest. Didn't think I could do anything with the information except die with it. If Vol-shit, sorry, I keep doing that. If he killed me, the current master of the wand, it wouldn't have affected him. Because I chose to die. You following?"

"We knew all of this, Harry." said Ron. "Well, not the Malfoy is the master thing, but it got switched to you?"

"When he Disarmed me at the Manor." Malfoy said. At Harry's surprised look, he rolled his eyes. "I did my research. I figured it out too."

"Er, right." said Harry. "Anyway, Malfoy didn't know I chose to die, and he was with the Death Eaters in that clearing. So he thought the full magic would go to _Him_, and he didn't want to let that happen. But the curse was cast and I came back from whatever place I was."

"So when _he_ had me go check if Potter was dead, I lied. And my mother seconded me on faith...which is probably why she's dead now." Malfoy said bitterly. "Anyway, I got him out. And when he revealed himself and everyone was fighting, I told him about the passage out of the school that the Carrows secretly opened. As an escape route for themselves, that is."

Harry nodded. "But then Malfoy, for some reason, practically begged me to keep quiet about it. I figured it was to save your skin lest Death Eaters find out, but I have _no idea-_" he shot a look at the blond boy directly across from him. "-_no clue_ why someone would want to cover up the bravest thing I have ever seen them do."

Malfoy actually flushed, to Ginny's surprise. "That's no matter. My story checks out."

"That it does." Hermione said quietly. "But how are we going to break it to the legions of people that hate you down here?"

"I'll vouch for him." Harry said immediately. "Of course I will, they can't directly oppose me anyway."

Ron's face was twisted into an ugly grimace. "I don't like this, mate, but if he checks out, he checks out. Still that's not going to stop Seamus from socking him in the face."

Harry sighed again. "True. Hermione?"

"I don't really think there's much we _can_ do, honestly." she said. "No offense, Malfoy, but you've been an ass to ninety percent of our soldiers."

"I know.' Malfoy said curtly.

"Well.." Hermione started. "We could disguise you. Get you some Polyjuice with regular refills."

Ron nodded. "Or just Transfigure his hair another color, like Luna does whenever we go out. Speaking of-where is she?"

Hermione looked at her folded hands in her lap. "I don't know." she said in a small voice. "We were attacked in the bookstore Apparation spot and she sent me off to Gringotts. She said she was getting help."

Harry paled. "If she was captured-"

"-she's dead by now." Ron finished. "Once they figured out they couldn't get past the wards, or worse, if they _broke the wards._"

"How did the Death Eaters know we were here? How did they find our entrance?" Harry hissed. "They couldn't have broken them, those wards are so complex only sheer force could break them."

"No Death Eater has that power." Hermione continued, shaking her head, voice trembling with apprehension. "Bellatrix Lestrange had the malice, maybe, but she's dead. That means-"

The three of them seemed to come to a conclusion at the same time, tensing up completely and exchanging furtive glances.

Neville raised an eyebrow. "While I'm impressed you three still do that finishing sentences thing, you mind explaining to the lesser beings?"

Harry inhaled deeply, casting a measuring look at the people in the room. "We don't know." he said evenly. "We just think that it's going to take a lot of precautions in case they do know where we are."

He was lying, Ginny knew it. They knew something, and they weren't telling! She opened her mouth to protest, but Harry cut across swiftly.

"Oh, Ginny, what am I doing? I should have taken you and Neville down to the living quarters as soon as you got here."

"Sorry?" Malfoy asked.

"Your mum, Gin, and Neville's grandmother is here too. Sorry, Draco, you're the first Malfoy in these halls.

Malfoy shrugged as Ginny and Neville lit up. "I know where all my family is. They're either dead or working for a loon."

Ron shrugged. "True enough. So what are we gonna do with you, then?"

"I got it." said Hermione. She drew her wand and walked the length of the table to Malfoy's seat. He cringed slightly, and Hermione rolled her eyes. "I'm not going to hurt you, calm down."

"I am calm." he snapped back.

Muttering a few words under her breath, Hermione changed his hair color to a chestnut brown and drew him heavy, dark eyebrows. "This might sting a bit." she warned, before casting a charm that lowered his angular cheekbones down on his face. Malfoy twitched, but otherwise didn't move. To finish it off, she drew a thin scar from his temple to the corner of his mouth. Smiling slightly at her handiwork, Hermione leaned back and looked him over. "Good." she said, before turning to Harry and Ron. "Good?"

"Hardly recognize him." Ron said. "What's your cover name going to be, Malfoy?"

"Er, there's a Dwalish on mother's side-"

"Nah, he's a twat, people might actually hate you more if you're a Dwalish." Neville piped up. "Choose something Muggle."

Malfoy sneered, but didn't protest. "I...don't know many Muggle surnames."

"McCoy." Hermione said matter-of-factly. "It's close enough to your proper name that you won't forget it."

"Good point." Harry said, pointing at Hermione. "Malfoy, don't forget your fake name. David for the first name, then?"

"David McCoy?" The sneer was pronounced this time. "Seriously?"

"Got any better ideas?"

"Well-"

"David McCoy it is." Harry said with an air of finality. "Now I've got to go deal with the major attack we just had, calm the crowd. Their probably wondering why I'm not there yet. Hermione, Ron, I'm going to give a speech and then I want all of the Order in this room. We have to figure out a course of action."

"Wait, what?" Ginny asked. "You want us to-"

"Not you lot." Harry said. "Go help with injuries and find your family."

"Understood," Neville said, standing up. "Gin, Malfoy-"

"No!" Ginny cried, pushing herself up. "No, I am not just going to leave all this to you lot!"

"Ginny..."

"_No." _she hissed fiercely. "I haven't seen you three in a year, and we've-we've been trying so hard keeping everything together and Neville's practically part soldier now, and we deserve to know what's going on!"

Harry was stricken, his eyes wide, staring at her as if he'd never seen her before. Apparently, he hadn't been questioned in a while. "Ginny," he started again, softer this time. "Ginny, what would your mother say if she knew I kept you for several hours that you could have been seeing her?"

"I don't care." Ginny said boldly, but she did. Her mum was the number one person she wanted to see, but Harry trying to use that against her was just _wrong_.

"Well, I do." said Harry. "Mrs. Weasley's been like a mom to me for as long as I can remember, and I'm not pissing her off where you're considered."

"Besides, what, deflowering her daughter at the end of the Quidditch season three years ago?"

Ron choked, and Harry went bright red. Ginny smirked, at least she was still capable of doing that to her boys.

"That's not-" Harry spluttered. "That's-that's neither here nor there. I'm not relenting on this, just for tonight, I need you to be with your family."

She softened slightly. "Just this once?"

"Yeah."

"Fine." Ginny said, walking quickly to the door. She grabbed Neville and Malfoy's sleeve as she passed, dragging them out the door. She distinctly heard a hissed "So that's why you weren't at the after party!"from Ron and laughed.

Everything still sucked, but at least she was with her friends. And Harry hadn't met any Veela while he'd been away, she could tell, so that was a plus.

* * *

It was cold.

It was cold and dark, and she didn't know where she was. She could smell sea salt and lavender all mixed up with the smell of rain and damp. She tried breathing, and found that she could. That was a relief for some reason. Her fingers scrabbled on the floor where she lay, but there was nothing but hard rock. She opened her eyes and tried sitting up, but the sharp pain in her abdomen made her sit right back down. As the rock ceiling came into focus, she turned her head slightly to see thick bars marring her way to a long corridor lit with torches.

How had she gotten here? Was she a prisoner?

The girl pushed herself up despite the aches, until she was leaning against the dank wall. The small cell she was in was barely three feet in length and width, and there seemed to be something dripping room the ceiling. She couldn't remember anything-that was worrying, really. The girl reached a hand out to touch the bars, but as soon as she came in contact with the cold metal, a blue spark shocked her and propelled her into the wall.

"Ah!"

Her voice was croaky with disuse, but as she shook out her burnt hand, she wondered exactly what kind of place she was in. All she had to do was wait, right? No one would leave her to rot down here! She'd break out of whatever this place was in no time.

* * *

"Potter?"

Harry turned to see Minerva McGonagall stalking his way. He bowed his head in an inclination of her presence, and paused to allow her to catch up. Since the Battle of Hogwarts, the Order of the Phoniex, headed by McGonagall, had been calling most of the shots. With the exception of Harry, of course. He made it very clear when he started the organization, no one was taking this rule from him. Still the Order was his 'cabinet' of sorts.

"Hello, Professor." he said politely.

"I keep telling you, Potter, it is foolish to continue addressing me as such. I am no long a teacher, and currently, you are my superior."

Harry shrugged sheepishly. "Old habits."

"Anyway, I wish to discuss our new arrivals. Ms. Weasley and Mr. Longbottom, where are they currently?"

"I sent them off to the living quarters. I figure they'd want to see their families."

McGonagall nodded. "Of course. And the other boy, the Muggleborn you said was hiding with them?"

"Ah, David McCoy, he said his name was. He's with them right now. Hasn't got any alive family."

She looked like she had just swallowed a lemon. "Potter, I saw the boy skirting the medics downstairs, and next time you want to disguise Draco Malfoy in front of our noses, you may want to do something about the complexion. Honestly, a weak scar isn't going to anything."

Harry winced. "I thought it was rather good?" he said.

"It wasn't. Tell Ms. Granger that she may have to go heavier on the eyebrows."

"Thanks for the heads up, Professor."

McGonagall rolled her eyes. "Sometimes I wonder what I taught you lot. Now tell me-do you truly believe Lovegood is alive?"

"No." Harry admitted. "I don't. You know that the only person who can break our wards with force would be-"

"Him, yes."

"-and after the wards are broken it's just down to the person to get rid of the attacker. If he went after Luna, even if she is Luna, she couldn't resist him."

"I'm afraid I think you're right, Potter." she clapped him on the shoulder sympathetically. "By the way, that was an impressive debriefing. You've gotten better at public speaking. Though you couldn't exactly have gotten _worse_."

She turned away from him with a swish of her robes, and moved away just as she had back in Hogwarts.

"Well, damn." a voice behind him said dryly.

Harry whirled around. "Ginny! Oh, er, hi."

She raised an eyebrow. "Hi?"

"Well, what else do you want me to say?" Harry said, starting forward. Ginny walked alongside him, but he was trying his best to not look at her. Honestly he thought he had this leading thing down, but then again, no one could shake him up like she could. She actually looked kind of annoyed, though. That was good, if he could affect her half as much as she did him, they'd be good as gold and incredibly frustrated with each other.

"Harry, look at me."

He heaved a sigh, and turned to meet her eyes. Ginny was glaring again, and he just thought it was _unfair_ for anyone to be so pretty with their eyes narrowed and their face all screwed up. "Yeah?"

"Look I-" she swallowed, and it was so different from the confident girl he knew Harry frowned. "I get what you did at Dumbledore's funeral and I understand, okay? I get why we broke up. But we never really did, did we?"

He closed his eyes. This is what he had been afraid of. "Ginny, of course I still care about you. But my reasoning stands. It's actually more dangerous now then it was back then."

"That's bullshit and you know it, Potter. Why not? Why not be together? My parents got together in the height of the war, yours too, it was because they knew that they were stronger together! I'm not in anymore danger being your bloody girlfriend than I am being a Weasley. I am not some liability, I am not eleven years old anymore."

"I never said you were a liability!"

"Then stop thinking you can protect me from them! Harry, the last time you left I started a revolution in Hogwarts, I trained everyone of those soldiers by myself, and I've been fighting this war just as much as you have. You have to recognize that!"

Harry seemed to deflate. "I can't see you get hurt, Ginny." he whispered. "No matter what."

"So what? You're going to stop me from fighting in skirmishes, were you going to pull me aside this afternoon so I could _stay safe_? I'm not going to stand behind you anymore. I can't, and I know you're not going to let me protect you. I want to be next to you, you prick."

He looked at her, her flushed face and bright eyes, and wondered what he had done to deserve Ginny Weasley. "Next to me?"

"I know, I know we have a lot of trust building shit to do, and I know we can't be how we used to be in school, but can't we skip it? Can't we just skip it all, can't we just be together, and Harry Potter, if you don't kiss me in the next five seconds I am going to hex you."

He reached for her before she got most of that last sentence out, but she didn't exactly have qualms with him guiding her chin to roughly meet his mouth. Harry cupped her face and her hands were somewhere in the stratosphere that was his hair, and somehow this was better than the school day kisses, somehow this was more real.

* * *

**AN: Hullo, friends! Hope you liked the chapter, I did want to focus on and establish the Ginny/Harry romance at first, but they're going to have their fair share of trials and tribulations, so don't worry bout a thing.**

**FF is still being weird about uploading these, but hey. Hopefully I'll figure it out. Also, story is still unbetaed, I require a bunch of help on stylistic points. Shoot me a PM if you know someone or are interested. **

**As always, thanks for reading, and please review? This is a trial story for me, I've never written anything this heavy. Critics and comments are very much appreciated! **

**Much love,**

**13opals**


	4. Owe You One

"Seamus!"

Seamus hit the ground as jets of red light shot past his head. His hair crackled and sizzled with the heat, and bests of sweat kept falling into his eyes. Dean Thomas, best mate and current partner, were chasing off the last of the now unfrozen Death Eaters. Apparently no one told them when the spell was going to wear off, and they were mostly unprepared when the black clad wizards suddenly started moving again. He rolled over, wand pointing at whatever was in front of him, and shot out a volley of Stunners. Leaping to his feet, Seamus sprinted to where Dean was and helped hoard the Death Eaters into a wall of some sort.

"We gotta box 'em in!" he yelled over the sound of fighting. Dean nodded, hitting no less than three Death Eaters. "I swear, if Harry better be owning us a favor after this!"

Dean laughed, ducking another shot. "Extra rations, for what, Seamus? Three weeks?"

"At least a month!" They were both laughing now-Harry never actually gave them extra rations, he couldn't afford to. But he always did hand them off a massive I.O.U. that paid off pretty well. Last time, Seamus used one to like, sleep for more than five hours. Still, he figured they had to be _alive_ to collect, and he intercepted a Death Eater trying to get the jump on them. He was always better at physical fighting than Dean was, so he jump-kicked the Death Eater in the chest and tackled him to the ground. Dean sent a well aimed Stunner at the man, knocking him out, and pulled Seamus up.

"Come on, that's nearly all of them." he said, wiping blood off his forehead. Seamus grinned, almost feral, and swung around to face the three still standing.

They seemed to a little too cautious to move, a little too smart. That was probably why they were still alive-Seamus narrowed his eyes, barely moving. There was still a wand hanging loosely from one of their hands and he didn't want his first move to set them off. Still, offense was the best defense. His arm snapping like a whip, Seamus sent a curse through the slits in his mask, and one of the others(a woman, Dean thought) squared off with Dean, dodging his own hexes. She was wandless, but she seemed fast enough to keep up with him irregardless of having a Shield Charm. She sidled closer to him through wayward motions and managed to hit him square in the chest. Dean rolled with the blow, crouching and seizing her arm as she pulled it back. He yanked her over his shoulder and onto the rock floor, one foot pinning her down and wand pointing at her throat. Behind him, Seamus Disarmed and Stunned the other Death Eater and look around for the third.

The woman under Dean's wand let out a choking cry as the third Death Eater's cloak whipped out of sight around a corner. "_Shit_." Seamus hissed, making to go after him. Dean grabbed his shoulder, shaking his head.

"Not what we need, mate. Get rid of this lot and we can take these two back to camp. Interrogate them or something."

"Harry never said-"

"Harry didn't know they were going to wake up. This could be useful."

"Well, he's going to be right pissed." Seamus said grudgingly. "Go on, Stun her and we'll do the rest of them."

Dean removed his boot from her throat, not anticipating the woman's foot to shoot up, knocking him flat on his back. She flipped up and turned to run, but Seamus hit her with a curse to the back, causing to her to double over and retch onto the rock. He helped Dean up, staring at the vomiting girl with disgust. "Ugh. Ron taught me that one."

Dean shrugged. "Ugh is right. Come on, let's go."

* * *

Hermione, cloak sweeping through the halls of the Resistance, was absolutely fuming.

Honestly, that wasn't even a novelty anymore. It seemed as though any time she spoke to her old friends or Harry's bloody _cabinet_, she ended up mad. Maybe it was just that no rescue mission would be provided for Luna, or that Ginny had somehow managed to coerce her way back into Harry's life. God, it was completely illogical, how could he think a relationship was the best idea now? And to make matters worse, Harry couldn't seem to decide whether or not he was playing the objective ruler. Because the decision to leave Luna was just cold, never mind practical. It was hard accepting such bloody rulings, when she knew that even the greater good couldn't be worth Luna Lovegood.

She was on her way to Ron's bunk, where Harry had promised to meet the two of them after the meeting. She was late, but if a happily snogging couple she passed were anything to go by, so was Harry. Ron ended up acting in the role Harry filled at school-she could rant at him all she wanted. And yet, Hermione found herself a little wistful. After the first and only kiss the two of them shared at the Battle, Hermione couldn't find it in her to pursue the relationship, and she knew that Ron couldn't either. After burying Fred, the only thing on his mind was revenge. It was an ugly fire, but it was part of what started the Resistance. He had, thankfully, mellowed out, but nothing was ever the same between the two of them. She did wish sometimes-Hermione's schoolgirl dreams all involved being _married_ and having _children_ with Ron, but right now? Right now they were best friends, allies, and outlets. It was very true that without Ron this past year, she would have gone on a murder spree.

Harry...had changed. When the Resistance was doing well, and he was between meetings, he seemed like his old self. But as soon as hi title and duties came up, Harry turned cold. He was a soldier now, a commander. Hermione suspected that after seeing the D.A. in the Battle made him put a little more effort into literally becoming what the public needed the Boy Who Lived to be.

She missed him, though. And he missed his friends, no doubt. But there was no helping it, Hermione thought. He was who he needed to be to beat Voldemort.

Hermione knocked thrice on Ron's door, and it opened instantly. Ron's exceptionally messy hair was like a flame in the gloom, and he offered her a small smile.

"Hey. You know where Harry is?" He moved aside to let her in.

Hermione rolled her eyes, entering and plopping down on Ron's bed. "Snogging your sister."

Ron groaned. "I'd think Ginny would have waited at least a day before moving in on him." He pulled out a rolling chair and sat down on it, facing her. "I know it's been a while, but-"

"Yeah, tell me about it" she shrugged. "How was your mum?"

"Overjoyed, of course. I haven't seen tears like that since we made prefect."

Hermione smirked, staring up at the peeling ceiling. "Is it just me, or are you less than happy to be reunited with Ginny?"

"It's not that I'm not happy, she's my sister and I love her, but god, she can be so mental sometimes. And it's like-she hasn't changed, you know?" Ron shrugged. "She's still...I don't want to say 'normal', but she's not like us."

"I get it." said Hermione. "We're kind of conditioned, yeah? Soldiers, like she said that one time. And Ginny hasn't been living like us, so seeing normal people just causes backlash."

There was another knock on the door, and Ron yelled a 'Come in!'. Harry poked his head through the door, letting himself in. Hermione noticed the exceptionally bright color of his face and rolled her eyes again.

"What's up?" said Harry, taking a seat against the wall on the floor.

Ron shot him a look. "Bloody hell, mate, it's been what, an hour and you're already exchanging saliva?"

Harry sighed, and buried his face in his hands. "I can't help it." he said, a little muffled. "She just comes up to me and asks me if I bloody _care_ about her, and it's the worst. I'm the worst."

"You are the worst." Hermione said playfully. Oh, look, Old Harry was making an appearance. Maybe having Ginny around was a good thing. "Alright Harry, seriously, why'd you call us here?"

Harry reemerged, frowning. "I just wanted to...throw some ideas around. We haven't been getting much intel lately, so hearing what Nev said to you, Hermione, about the Resistance being played off as fake, I think we should do something about that."

"We haven't got the man power." Ron said. "Not for a strike."

"See, that's not what I'm thinking." Harry said, a little more emphatically now."Remember the Quibbler stunt back in fifth year?"

Hermione grinned to herself. She was particularly proud of that one. "Yes?"

"So what if we just get the word out. The Resistance lives, or something like that. Just so we can lift moral, get the people to support us. Not publicly, but enough to fight on our side in this final showdown we're working towards."

Hermione covered her mouth with her hands. "Oh my- Harry you're talking about a poster campaign. You're talking about _running against the Dark Lord in for popular vote._"

And now they were all laughing, because the idea of Voldemort in an election was just too much. The worst thing was, it might work.

"Wait." Ron said, sobering. "This is gonna make us a target again."

Harry wiped a tear from behind his glasses. "They sent a full frontal assault today. I think we're already a target. Which means it's time to get risky."

"Oh, good." Ron said. "We're always the best with risky."

Hermione nodded. "I hate to say it, but yeah, we are. How are you going to pitch this to the Order?"

"I'm not." Harry said. "I want a small team on this."

Hermione frowned. "Harry, no."

"I mean it. The Order, my cabinet, it's gotten too political. Too Ministry. I'm not having this, if this-uh-poster campaign works, I'm taking over. Completely."

The other two stared blankly at Harry, who nodded defiantly. "I mean it. Don't look at me like that, we got more done at seventeen in a fucking tent than they have. I know, we have to care about these other people too, and perhaps the Order is more for those people's safety, but it's time to attack."

Ron actually stood up. Hermione blinked tears out of her eyes. "Oh, _Harry_!"

"Thank. Merlin." said Ron. "You have no idea how long we've been waiting to hear that, mate."

Harry blinked. "What?"

"Oh come on, Harry, they've been holding us back for ages, but you seemed so pleased with them-" Hermione cried.

"Pleased? With them? It's been stifling!" They were all standing up, and all Hermione wanted to do was fling her arms around his neck. Oh thank Merlin, thank everyone everywhere that made this happen.

"We've got to proceed properly, though." she said, smiling broadly and yet bringing them all down to earth. "Alright. So how are we going to topple two _stifling_regimes before tea?"

"Keep it peaceful." Harry said. "It's not like they're all bad, McGonagall has been talking to me a lot lately, and I think she's fed up with them too. It's blokes like Elphias Doge we gotta worry about."

Ron nodded. "How about you say you're implementing a more streamlined version of the Order? Like, with only the trustworthy people."

"That's an idea." said Hermione. Ron looked decently pleased with himself. "But they're going to protest."

Harry rolled a hand. "Hermione, they can't say that I haven't got the authority. If a split of the organization happens, they know full well every single person here is going to follow me. But that's not what I'm going for, if we split we'll just be that less powerful."

"I agree." said Hermione. "Merlin and Agrippa, I wish Luna were here. She actually knows politics better than any of us."

"She does?"

"Her family runs a _newspaper_, Ronald. Anyway, we can get some others in on this to help?"

"Yeah, we'll need them. Alright." said Harry, clapping his hands together. "We're going to do this properly. Hermione, can I get a list of trustworthy people we can allow in, and a separate one of Order members? Ron, mate, I need PR. I need to know what the soldiers think of becoming a target, start with the best and move down. I'm gonna track down Parvati Patil and get her to design me some motherfucking campaign posters."

Hermione grinned. "Done and done."

Ron clapped Harry on the shoulder. "It's good to be back, right?" he said, and exited the room. Harry smiled bashfully at both of them.

"Yeah." he said brightly. "It is."

* * *

Seamus squatted down by the female Death Eater, now shackled up to a wall. Dean had gone to find Harry, but for know they stuck the two captured Death Eaters in the 'cells'. They were, in actuality, old living quarters, but they made do. "Wanna start with a name?" he asked.

He could see her cognac eyes narrowing behind the mask, and Seamus wrenched it off. The woman's face was pale as snow, her dark hair tucked into a bun by the nape of her neck, her mouth twisted into a snarl made less attractive by the thin stream of bile tracking down her chin. _Oh no,_ Seamus thought sardonically, rolling his eyes. _She's fucking pretty._

"Look." he said, "We're not going to torture or kill you unless we absolutely have to, and you're not really opening up any windows."

The woman lifted her chin proudly, and continued glaring at him. She pressed her lips together, and threw him a bitter smile.

Seamus, however, had seen her type before in one Bellatrix Black. "Yeah, okay, you're happy to die for the Dark Overlord, or whatever they're calling him these days. Fine. No problem. I'm just gonna get Harry-Harry _Potter_, you've heard of him, dear-and he'll figure out what to do with you."

"No!" the woman cried out, surprising the both of them. Her eyes widened, and she looked like she was cursing herself for speaking. "Just-no. Don't bring him down here."

"Why not?" Seamus asked, inwardly praising himself on breakthrough.

"He's a _monster_." she said emphatically. "I've heard the stories, alright? You people can't fool me, everyone knows Ha-The Boy Who Lived is a cold blooded killing machine."

"I think-I think you might be a little misinformed." he said, shaking his head. "Harry's one of the nicest blokes I know, promise. Went to school with him and everything." She was shrinking away from _ him_ now too, and he quickly backtracked. "Okay, anyway, can I get your name?"

Her eyes fluttered down and to the opposite wall, never daring to have eye contact. "Imogen."

"That's a nice name, Imogen." Seamus said, hoping it didn't sound too stilted. Dean was way better at this than he was. "How old are you, were you at Hogwarts?"

Imogen shook her head. "I was at Durmstrang. I left school last year."

"Huh." he said. "You don't have much of an accent. I know a Durmstrang guy, he's been here for years and he still can't speak English too well."

"I'm good with languages." the woman whispered.

The door opened slowly, and Dean entered. "You got her talking, then? I found Fearless Leader here in Ron's room." Harry trailed behind him, not looking as authoritative as a leader should.

"What did you say about her?" Harry asked. Imogen gasped, eyes flicking to his scar, and yanked at the chains that bound her. When they refused to yield, she exhaled sharply, breathing out the stark terror on her face, and closed her eyes.

"She says she went to Durmstrang." Seamus said, staring at her reaction. Harry looked dumbfounded. "Her name's Imogen."

Harry nodded, walking closer to the shackled girl. "Imogen?" he asked, convincing kindness in his voice.

"I won't tell you anything." She said, had and fast. 'I don't care how good at torture you are, I don't care if you _are _ The Boy Who Lived-just-just kill me already."

Harry frowned. "I don't-what gives you the idea that I'd kill you on sight? You're a Death Eater, right? Doesn't Voldemort still try to convince his followers that I'm a helpless teenager that survived on pure luck?"

Imogen's eyes snapped open. "I am not a Death Eater!" she hissed. "And everyone knows about the people you massacred at the Battle of Hogwarts, and all the Snatchers you killed that year! There are horror stories about you!"

His jaw dropped. "Okay, what? That...literally made zero sense." Harry looked directly at her, and squatted down next to Seamus. "Show me your eyes." he commanded.

She didn't resist, just displayed her bright, glassy whiskey eyes to him in a show of defiance. whatever Harry found in them, he didn't seem to like it. He stood, motioning at Seamus. "I need McGonagall, and Ron and Hermione. She's completely laced with Memory Charms, and I think there might actually be an Imperius on her."

As Seamus turned to leave, Harry grabbed his arm. "One more thing, both of you. We got newcomers during the fight. Neville and Ginny are alive."

It was like Christmas came early.

Harry gave a small smile. "And I owe you guys one.

* * *

Voldemort let his pale palms press against the dark wood table, Nagini slithering across his shoulders. _No, _ not Nagini, another snake he had gotten to console himself after her death. Names didn't have importance when the object to be named was a figurehead-he didn't need to name this snake.

"Yaxley." he said coolly. "Avery. What have I told you about retreat?"

The two men, heads bowed, stood in front of him. "You said you wouldn't excuse it, my Lord." Yaxley said quietly.

"Correct, Yaxley, though sometimes I do wonder if there is intelligence in you or just blind memorization." he hissed. "And yet, you retreat. Killing barely any of my enemies, losing half of your attack force, what am I to do with you?"

"That's not all, my Lord." Avery piped up. Yaxley, next to him, closed his eyes in defeat.

Voldemort raised an eyebrow. "Well?"

"Yaxley managed to escape, but they got the girl and Carrow."

"The girl?"

"The Hawkins girl, my Lord. Imogen Hawkins."

Rage boiled up through his veins. He had put a lot of work into Imogen Hawkins. The Greengrass family would not be pleased, and he was downright furious. "How could have you been so foolish?" he spat. "Of all the people, you lose the _one _ person I tell you it is unacceptable to lose?"

Their screams would echo in the dark hall or hours.

* * *

**AN: Yooooo**

**New chapter, woo. This is basically me procrastinating during midterms, to be honest, so I'm both short tempered and out of my mind. Anyhow, I hope you liked this one! This is where plot starts happening. Trust me.**

**I was a little disappointed with reviews this week-er, haven't gotten any, despite the countless hits. I mean, still looking for a beta, so it would be really nice if a couple of you could shoot me a message if I messed something up or got anything wrong.**

**Next chapter decidedly earlier than expected! I'm nearly half way through. **

**Love,**

**13opals**


	5. Politics

David McCoy did not like to wander the halls of the Resistance on his own. He mostly kept to himself, in the room he was supposed to share with Neville. Even he had to admit life was better here, he hadn't seen a mattress in ages. It was a very decrepit mattress, and perhaps sleeping on the floor might be better, but he would take what he would get.

That seemed to be a motto in his life recently. Settling for less than the best, finding comfort in the tiny constants that were the Wealsette and Longbottom. No, Draco Malfoy hadn't changed that much, but he at least had something to do here. Wandering the countryside for over a year had been fruitless in his anti-Voldemort mission, and at least here...he wouldn't have bet on Potter until he saw the steely way he fought. Yes, Draco decided, this was the winning side. Slytherin through and through, he chose carefully and with deliberation, and quite honestly the only reason his he had stayed with the Death Eaters for so long was because of his mother.

Narcissa loved him.

Of that he was sure. When Draco had been called, hands shaking and palms sweating, to check upon the body of Harry Potter, he knew that his next words could have some very serious consequences. He felt Harry's pulse, saw him take a shaky breath of air, and made his choice. This boy had survived the Killing Curse twice, there was every possibility he simply couldn't be killed. Karma wise, Draco wasn't winning any favors with Potter after Voldemort was dead, so he decided to start now.

"Dead." he proclaimed, standing. Voldemort raised an eyebrow, and tutted softly to himself. A cold shock of fear spread through him. Had this been a test? Had he failed, was he going to die?

"Perhaps your, ah, classmate affection has impaired your judgement, Draco." Voldemort said softly. "Now, don't look so worried, I should never have asked you, how _traumatic_." His red eyes narrowed into slits. "You. Check."

Narcissa Malfoy shot forward, stark fear on her face. She gave a tiny, almost invisible, nod of her head and knelt by Potter. She froze as her hand found his pulse, and Draco watched emotions flit in her eyes. Narcissa Malfoy was not fool enough to show her emotions. She closed her eyes for a second, threw on a triumphant smile, and turned to face Lord Voldemort. "The Boy Who Lived is no more, my Lord."

Looking back, he was sure this is why she was dead. Lucius was still kicking, though he had been _severly _punished for his family's transgression. Narcissa had stood tall and strong, stronger than his father ever was, and it was her who shoved him roughly in the servant's well to hide the day them came for her. Narcissa Malfoy knew what she was doing.

Draco, however, did not. He had no family. His father wasn't anyone worth it anymore, so the closest thing he had was Ginny and Neville. And _god_, he couldn't think of them as family, he may as well snap his wand in half and live in isolation in the Muggle world. Then again, he thought gloomily, the Muggle world didn't even seem like too bad of a place anymore. What had they done to him?

"Oi, Mal-McCoy."

It was Neville, standing at the door of their bunk. Draco looked up from his extensive carving of patterned swirls he was etching in the bed post. "Yeah?"

"Basic training time."

"Basic what?"

"This is an army we've joined, mate, we've got training in the morning. And the afternoon, and the-"

"I get it." he snapped. "Fine. Take me to training."

* * *

Hermione frowned, staring at the girl sitting, bound, on the wooden chair in her own chambers. "Is that a little more comfortable than the cells?" she ventured.

Imogen shrugged as well as her handcuffs allowed. "They aren't very good cells, you know."

"We do our best." Hermione said. "Ready?"

She averted her eyes. "As I'll ever be, I guess."

Hermione emptied a vial into a small glass of water, swirled it around, and then handed it to her. Truth serum was never her favorite way to get information, but it was clean and almost always worked. Imogen drowned it in a single gulp. She blinked several times, her glassy eyes never leaving Hermione's. Hermione took a seat in the chair right in front of her.

"Okay." she said. "What's your name?"

Imogen frowned. "I don't know."

"You don't know? But you've told us your name is Imogen."

"I wasn't lying." she said, sounding shocked by the possibility. "That's what they told me my name was. Never believed 'em."

"Who's they?" Hermione asked, leaning forward in her seat.

"The men in black, of course."

Hermione pressed her lips together. "Okay. Okay." She turned to Harry behind her. "The men in black, Harry. You're turn." He rolled his eyes as they switched positions, Hermione going to stand by Ron in the back corner of the room. She folded her arms, wondering why she was getting so short tempered over this.

"Wasn't McGonagall supposed to be here?" she asked Ron quietly.

He shrugged. "I guess Dean's still finding her."

Harry ran a hand through his hair, noticing that Imogen shrunk away from him a little, She didn't quite think he was a homicidal maniac anymore, not after seeing him trip and fall spectacularly over a loose cobblestone. No one noticed Hermione pushing him.

"I'm going to call you Imogen, if that's okay?" at her nod, Harry continued. "Do you know a man known as the Dark Lord?"

"I know of him." Imogen said. "Everyone does! The Dark Lord took over the Wizarding World five years ago, when he killed Albus Dumbledore. Since then, he has removed all class distinction in Wizarding Britain, and within the next few months he plans on moving on to the Muggle world."

"He's been saying that for years." Harry said, noting all the inaccuracies in her history. "Never gets anywhere."

Imogen rolled her eyes. "Where have you been? He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named took the Muggle Prime Minister into custody _weeks__ ago._"

Hermione started forward as Harry's eyes widened and Ron let out a muffled gasp. "How do you know?" she asked sharply.

"It's common knowledge-"

"No, it's not. We would have picked up on that. Who told you, was it the men in black? Tell me everything, where you woke up, how the men found you, everything."

"Well-yes, I suppose." She bit her lip. "I woke up in a prison. Well, I think it was a prison. It was dark and cold and there were large holes in the stone walls. It kinda looked like it caved in. And the men in back found me and took me to this big, big house with these weird white birds. I remember the birds, one of them came real close to me once. And they kept me in that big, big house and fed me and then they started taking me out to train with them. One of the men was really nice, but then they started taking me on missions and such. They told me all about the Dark Lord. And the Prime Minister."'

Ron lightly touched Hermione's forearm, drawing her back. Harry pushed himself off the chair and walk round to the two of them. "What do you think?" he asked quietly. "I think the dissolvation of the Order's gotta happen soon. We need to push this to priority level."

"I agree."

"Same."

He nodded once, and turned to Imogen. "Thank you, we're gonna take you to your room now. Ron, can you bring her to the open room near yours?"

"Yeah, sure, boss." Ron said. He flicked his wand and Imogen's bonds disappeared, though she was still tied together at the wrists. "Come on, then."

"And there's going to be an older lady who's gonna come check on you in a bit." Harry continued. "She'll be with one of us, no need to worry."

"I am _not_ worrying." Imogen snapped. The Vertiaserum seemed to have worn off. "You don't have to treat me like a bloody _guest_, I'm a prisoner and I know it."

Harry shrugged. "You're whatever you think you are. But Ron-lock the door."

* * *

"Positively _glowing_ with Memory Charms and potions." Hermione said, very fast, to a frowning Professor McGonagall. They were quickly marching down to the mess hall, after McGonagall expressed her wish to see the girl at a later hour. "And she got so many facts wrong when we asked her about basic history, you have no idea."

"No, Ms Granger, I do not. As I have not examined the girl yet." she answered in a slightly reproving tone. Hermione flushed.

"Sorry, Professor."

They entered the mess hall, a large cinder blocked room with long metal tables reminiscent of the House tables. An elevated table in the front, perhaps where the teachers used to sit, was where actual food was served. Hermione was just about to turn away from the ex-teacher when Neville Longbottom came face to face with her-rather, he barreled into her. Hermione blinked at the impact, smashing into his chest and bouncing off. Neville grabbed her wrists to keep her steady.

"Christ, Hermione, sorry!"

"It's fine, it's okay." Hermione said, offering him a grin. "In a hurry?"

"Not really, I just-Professor!"

Finally spotting McGonagall, Neville went and swept her in a large hug. Both women were more than a little taken back, and the elder froze before patting Neville on the back.

"Er, hello, Longbottom. Good to see you."

He pulled away from her, holding her at arms length. "We all thought he killed you, Professor. Thank god you're alive!"

McGonagall shook her head, and there was a smile playing around her lips. "I rather think you'd know that I'm far more tough than he is, immortality aside. It is good to see you as well, Longbottom." She neatly dislodged herself from Neville, glancing at Hermione. "Ms Granger, we shall continue our discussion at a later date."

She bowed her head. "Of course." Neville beamed at her. "Actually, Hermione, Dave and I wanted to speak to you."

Dave? Oh, right they _had_ named Draco Maloy David. She waved a hand. "By all means. Where are you sitting?"

He threw an arm around her shoulder, waved at McGonagall, and steered her to what would have been the Gryffindor table. Malfoy was seated near the end of it, looking glumly at his soup. Hermione slid into the seat next to him, Neville on her other side.

"Sorry bout the food. I'm afraid it all tastes like that." she said.

Malfoy glanced at her, brows furrowing. "Granger. We wanted a word."

She nodded. "Proceed, but let me get some food first." Neville slid her an unmarked bowl of soup.

"Way ahead of you."

Hermione shot him a quick smile and turned back to Malfoy. "Alright?"

"This training..."

Ah, the training. Hermione hadn't had time to stop by in the past few days, but she normally frequented it with Harry and Ron. It was a bit like all day DADA, with a slightly more physical side, and was mandatory to all but them. "What about it?"

"We want exemptions."

She raised an eyebrow.

"Or-or at least not to be lumped in with people that have the talent of first years!"

"_Dave_", Hermione said, patronizingly.

"He is right, Hermione." Neville piped up. "We've been on the run for a year now, it would be good to get some proper Auror training. Learning simple noverbal spells ain't going to change much."

She frowned. They were right, not only were Ginny and Neville first hand Dumbledore's Army members, they did have a bit more experience that the others. "You see, our Aurors are too far ahead, you're going to have to continue your physical training with the newer members. But...I'll speak to the training master."

Neville smiled. "All we wanted, thanks!"

"And the food really is terrible." Malfoy drawled. Hermione rolled her eyes, and returned Neville's smile. She pushed herself up from her half eaten meal and nodded.

"I should get going. I got some work to do."

"You haven't even eaten!" Neville objected.

Hermione waved him off. "I'll eat more at dinner. Anyway, rations are probably going to get tighter, I'd eat the extra food while you can."

She stalked out of the mess, making way for the archives. The archives were where Harry kept all the books from Sirus's house, as well as everything the Order could scrounge up from their private stores and the Hogwarts library. God, she missed the library. The archives were informative, yes, but nowhere near the massive source of information she was used to.

The doors were well locked. Hermione herself had designed this place, modeling it after Harry's experience in the Ravenclaw Common Room. There was a complicated spell system with rotating riddles and answers-all in all, she was very proud of the magic that went into the door. Hermione opened them with three strokes of her wand, setting the dials rolling and the tumblers to fall out of place. Nodding, she pushed them open to find the large stacks of books surrounding a long wooden table. Padma and Terry were already there.

"Let's get those Runes out of the way." she said, rolling up her sleeves.

* * *

"Let me be clear." Harry said, palms flat on the steel table, flint in his voice and eyes. "The Resistance's primary purpose is to _end the Dark Lord_. I am afraid that that is no longer in the Order's best interest."

Eleven pairs of eyes stared at him in horror, as if catching on to what he was saying. "I've always had complete control of the Resistance. Always, despite the Order's attempt at curbing my actions. I remember the last strike proposed-" He fished out a paper from the reports in front of him. "To use some choice words, you told me I was being 'reckless', and it would 'be folly to attack rather than survive.'" Harry tossed the paper over his shoulder.

"Our goal is not to survive. Our goal is to uproot the control that the Dark Lord has upon the Wizarding World, our goal is to protect as many people as possible. While by not attacking, we are keeping those under our protection safe, most of Britain, Muggles and Wizards alike have been dying. The _greater good_ is to put our own people into danger. The outsiders, their need is greater than ours. The Order fails to see that. Therefore, I fail to see the point of an Order that does not share our goals."

"My dear boy," Elphias Doge gasped, wiping torrents of sweat from his brow with a discolored handkerchief. "Surely you cannot believe you can run this organization by yourself."

Harry nodded politely at him. "Actually, I do. But I won't. Despite the trust in myself I have, I will be establishing a more select council. A know how much a second opinion is worth."

"What you're saying," McGonagall said slowly. "is that the Resistance is now under militant rule."

He beamed. "Thank you, Professor, that's exactly what I'm saying."

She nodded. "No offense, Potter, but you can be hotheaded sometimes. I must insist that select council be fairly chosen for their abilities, intellect, and experience in the field."

"He'll end up putting his own people in this select council, Minevra, surely you see that." Doge argued. "What you lot are giving him is complete control."

The flint returned to Harry's eyes as McGonagall turned to Elphias Doge. "Elphias, Potter does not _have_ his own people. This is not the Ministry. There are no sides, and he is quite right. A unified rule will benefit us all. However, in order to make decent decisions-" she turned to Harry. "-your council should be capable of providing that ever so important second opinion."

"I agree." Harry said coldly, still staring Doge down.

He wasn't going without a fight, though. Doge drew himself up to his full, minuscule height. "We can boot you out of power."

"With what?" Harry rolled his eyes. "The Aurors are dead loyal to me, as are most of the people who live here. Splitting the resistance will also divide our power, which, as I may remind you, does not help the end goal." Doge opened his mouth, but Harry cut across. "You're overruled, Doge. As last formal job of the Order, I'd like nominations for this select council. I still have final say, but if you can think of anyone that can really help, go ahead."

He uncapped a pen and pulled a fresh sheet of paper towards him. "Go on, then."

"Kingsley Shacklebolt." McGonagall said. Kingsley, across from her, raised an eyebrow and nodded deeply. Harry smiled slightly and nodded, writing the name down.

"Minevra McGonagall." Kingsley returned.

"Terrence Boot." said Emmeline Vance. At the surprised looks from around the table, she shrugged. "He's clever, and as our current leader is eighteen, I don't think there's a problem with having people his age."

"In that case," said Molly Weasley. "Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley."

Nods went around the table. No one could dispute their contributions.

"Silena Fenwick."

"Dean Thomas."

"Neville Longbottom."

"Thanks." Harry said, frantically scribbling. "I'll probably take or cut out some more. Thus ends the last meeting of the Order, thank you very much or your assistance."

There was a great scrambling of chairs as the Order got up and left the room, most of them shooting Harry a smile on the way out. Gosh,he had thought that was going to be _much_ harder. At least now he had the way clear for him to deal with the Muggle Minister and whatever Imogen was on about, as well as his 'political campaign'.

A good day, Harry thought, grinning and wondering exactly where Ginny was.

* * *

**_The Resistance_**

**_Select Council Final Cut_**

_Minevra McGonagall_

_Padma Patil_

_Neville Longbottom_

_Kingsley Shacklebolt_

_Emmeline Vance_

_Hermione Granger_

_Ron Weasley_

* * *

**AN: Hello beautiful people! Yeah that early update was gonna happen, but then I accidentally deleted like half of this chapter. Anyway, thank you for all those who reviewed!**

**To Guest: Luna's story isn't over yet, friend. I'm glad I caught your interest!**

**To Ranger: The Malfoy bit is important, don't worry. He's not very special yet, but they are going to need him a lot in the later chapters.**

**Anyhow, midterms are over, so I am free to write once more! Please review and I'll see y'all in a bit!**

**Love,**

**13opals**


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